Graeme Leopard Spots

[Ken84050]

      Neil is becoming more confident.   In Chapter 39 he often takes charge.

 

      He is clearly in charge of his relationship with Liam.

“Neil and I had a good talk yesterday and another this morning. I understand where I stand.”

 

      When Doug finished intimidating him, Neil put Doug on to the back foot.

“Doug?”

Doug frowned as he glanced back. “What?”

“Thanks.” When Doug didn’t look like he understood, Neil continued. “Thanks for helping Liam. It’s taken me a while to let Liam in, but I really appreciate what you’ve done to make that happen.”

 

      Neil decided to visit his parents, and to take Liam.

Neil took a deep breath and looked at Liam. “I’m going to see my parents. Not this Sunday, but the one after. I want you to come with me.”

....

I don’t want to shut them out, but I don’t want them to think that I’m not gay or let them think that they can ignore it because I never show them...”

 

      He politely asked Liam to give him private time with Clarissa.

“Do you mind if you don’t join us this time?” He gave Liam a smile. “You can join us in the future if Clarissa doesn’t mind, but I want to talk to her in private about something.”

 

      He had firm plans about dealing with his father.

Neil swallowed and then shuffled closer to Liam so the two faced Liam’s parents as one. “I promise you: I won’t let my dad touch Liam.”

Bruce narrowed his eyes. “You’re going to incite him into doing something.”

Neil shook his head. “The only thing we’ll be doing is holding hands.” He reached over his shoulder and pulled Liam’s arm back onto the table. He clasped Liam’s hand. “Like this. If that sets off my dad, there’s no hope for him.”

 

      A new Neil is emerging.     

Edited May 3, 2015 by Ken84050

[MikeL]

Oh and on my third read this made me laugh: Liam’s jaw dropped open.

How the fuck did he do that ??   (Normally your mouth falls open or your jaw drops, right?)

 

 

 

Liam's a very talented person. That's all I'll say...

 

Does Liam by any chance have a double jointed mandible?

 

 

 

 

 

[Ken84050]

      I talk too much;  but nobody else has commented on Doug.   Neil is finding him an increasingly complex character.

He no longer knew how Doug was going to react. It had been easy in previous years: Doug would torment him. It had been even easier over recent weeks: Doug would ignore him. With Neil and Liam starting to explore a possible relationship, Doug had changed again.

 

      The newest surprise is Doug's relationship with Liam's autistic brother Noel.

“Yeah, and he’s cool with Noel.” Liam pulled a face. “The two get along great, actually. Doug’s one of the few people that Noel allows to roughhouse him. There have even been occasions when Doug’s been at my place where he spent more time with my brother than with me.”

 

      An alarming thought is that Noel may end up liking Doug but disliking Neil.   That would put poor Liam under even more difficult pressure.   Let's hope Graeme isn't that tough on him!     

Edited May 3, 2015 by Ken84050

[Timothy M.]

On 5/3/2015 at 11:58 AM, Ken84050 said:

      I talk too much;  but nobody else has commented on Doug.   Neil is finding him an increasingly complex character.

      The newest surprise is Doug's relationship with Liam's autistic brother Noel.

      An alarming thought is that Noel may end up liking Doug but disliking Neil.   That would put poor Liam under even more difficult pressure.   Let's hope Graeme isn't that tough on him!     

No you don't, I enjoy reading your comments here and I bet Graeme does too.

My guess is Noel will get on perfectly fine with Neil, since Neil isn't one to force his company on others or make thoughtless comments or loud noises.

Edited July 24, 2019 by Timothy M.

[Graeme]

Sometimes I can't comment without risking a spoiler -- something I try to avoid as much as possible. I'm certainly enjoying the comments and speculation!

[Ken84050]

      The visit to Neil's parents may be a few chapters away, but Graeme's fans are bound to be thinking about it.

 

      I'm not expecting violence, but incomprehension.   Remember Mary's querulous words in Chapter 38:

 

“Why is this happening? Is it something we did wrong? ....

I meant about him being...you know...a homosexual....

They’re holding hands. Could he be the one who changed Neil?”

 

      The visit is likely to find the Rosewoods baffled about how their perfectly normal son became corrupted.   Was something wrong with their parenting?  Was it Liam's fault?  Was it Jim's fault?  Who is to blame?

 

      Patient explanations by Neil and others won't easily penetrate that mind-set.

 

      Or else I could be quite wrong.    

Edited May 8, 2015 by Ken84050

[Timothy M.]

On 5/7/2015 at 10:57 AM, Ken84050 said:

      Patient explanations by Neil and others won't easily penetrate that mind-set.

      Or else I could be quite wrong.    

we may find out tomorrow or not

Edited July 24, 2019 by Timothy M.

[Ken84050]

      At last Neil and Liam are becoming playful instead of always treading warily around each other.

 

Liam wasn’t expecting anything and was taken by surprise when Neil wrestled him onto his back. Neil smirked down at him while using his weight to keep Liam’s arms pinned to the bed.

 

It's surprising that he could.  Liam is strong enough to have severely beaten up a fellow footballer, so Neil is evidently no weakling.   We can tell that they are about the same height, from Chapter 37:

 

Liam squeezed gently, holding Neil close to him, and the two rested their heads on each other’s shoulders.

 

Unlike some authors, Graeme doesn't overload his stories with boring physical descriptions of all his characters.  I don't remember any description of Neil, but there are two thumbnail sketches of Liam.   In Chapter 28 Clarissa described him:

 

Medium height, brown hair that’s always untidy, toned body, muscular arms...gay.

 

In Chapter 38 Neil said to him:

 

You’re fit, good looking, and popular.

 

      At the other end of Chapter 40 we find Ty being a perfect gentleman in conversation with Patrick O'Malley.   A most courteous brat!   If he is the only one that the Carlton club wants,  I'm sure Patrick and others will find a way to treat Jim well. They seem to be humane people.  But what about Deon?

Edited May 9, 2015 by Ken84050

[Timothy M.]

On 5/9/2015 at 12:42 PM, Ken84050 said:

It's surprising that he could.  Liam is strong enough to have severely beaten up a fellow footballer, so Neil is evidently no weakling.

I'm guessing Liam was partly taken by surprise and partly more than happy to give in to any kind of physical contact Neil might initiate.

I was a bit surprised Neil didn't tell Liam about Doug's threats and Clarissa's opinion, but he probably felt Liam's reassurances were enough. And Neil has already found out Liam isn't keen to discuss Doug and is afraid of having to make a choice between his friend and his (almost-)boyfriend.

Oh and I'm out of likes, so have a instead.

Edited July 24, 2019 by Timothy M.

[MikeL]

Here's an article from today's New York Times which may be of interest to Lillydale Leopards fans: 

Australian Football Visits U.S. in Search of Basketball Big Men

 

 

BRADENTON, Fla. — Jalen Carethers, four weeks removed from his final game as a basketball player at Radford, was at a loss. Sports had always come easily to him, but now he was standing in the middle of a multipurpose field at IMG Academy, cradling an oblong ball in his hands and doing his best to figure out how to make this foreign object fly.

“Where on the foot do you want to hit it?” he asked.

 

Michael Ablett, a national talent manager for the Australian Football League, advised Carethers to snap his leg and make contact with his forefoot. The idea, or at least the hope, was to keep his foot stiff so that he would generate enough force to send the ball end over end on a smooth parabola.

 

 

More

[Graeme]

Thanks, Mike! American basketballers seem to be the athletes of choice when it comes to Australian Rules Football. I think that's because their size and athleticism makes up for a lack of sport-specific skills. I don't think there are any American's playing at the AFL level, but there are a few playing at the VFL level (or interstate equivalent).

 

For example, Alex Aurrichio, Mason Cox, and a couple of years ago, Patrick Mitchell. And here's a video report on the 2014 American prospects from the equivalent event in May last year.

 

Hmm...I wonder if the Leopards might consider recruiting an American at the end of the season....

Edited May 9, 2015 by Graeme

[MikeL]

Hmm...I wonder if the Leopards might consider recruiting an American at the end of the season....

 

 In a sequel perhaps? 

[Ken84050]

Well,  Graeme (or anyone else) is welcome to correct this chronology....

 

      I've done something similar for "Leopard Skin Cover" on its old forum page

https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/38395-graeme-leopard-skin-cover/page-3

which seemed the natural place to put it.   Perhaps some new reader may find it there.   

 

      Re-reading that story was a real pleasure, reminding me of some of the background to "Leopard Spots".  Knowing the gay player's identity gave a different slant to the story,  and the first meeting between Ty and Karen in Chapter 7 was still delicious.

 

      My dating of the "Leopard Spots" prologue was incomplete.   Sam referred to "next weekend", meaning the 29th and 30th March, so I dated the prologue on Saturday 22nd (because if he had said it earlier, the next weekend would have been the 22nd and 23rd).   But the first part of the prologue had the Rosewoods watching the TV programme which was actually on Thursday 20th (according to "Leopard Skin Cover" Chapter 15).   Sorry about that.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Ken84050

[Timothy M.]

I'm reading through the story Again, and got to the place where Neil's mom says:

Mrs. Rosewood’s eyes widened, and she put a hand to her mouth. She stared at Neil. “He hasn’t...done anything...has he? Like what happened to your other friend?”

And it suddenly occurred to me: does she mean Dave from the Leopards when she says your other friend?

I assumed she meant someone they knew personally in the past, which could explain her husband's dislike even if mistaken, but if it's Dave then Phil is even more irrational in his hatred than I thought.

Edited July 24, 2019 by Timothy M.

[Ken84050]

      This seems to refer back to the last section of Chapter 22,  so she pretty clearly meant Dave.

Edited May 10, 2015 by Ken84050

[Ken84050]

“Ah, my favourite lady! How are you doing, Mandy, on this beautiful June Saturday afternoon?”

Mandy chuckled as she glanced up at the grey skies. It was a typical winter’s day, ....

 

      Neatly done!   Graeme subtly reminds his northern hemisphere readers which way round the seasons are.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Ken84050

[Timothy M.]

I'm hoping your birthday celebrations won't make you forget to upload a Leopard chapter. I'm dying to know how Jim and Ty got on with the training session.

[Graeme]

The next chapter is preloaded and scheduled to post at the usual time today

[impunity]

Are birthday wishes in order?

[Graeme]

Always!

[Timothy M.]

On 5/16/2015 at 12:39 AM, impunity said:

Are birthday wishes in order?

you can join the crowd of well-wishers here: https://www.gayauthors.org/forums/topic/40339-happy-birthday-graeme/page-2#entry513331 

Edited July 24, 2019 by Timothy M.

[Timothy M.]

Reply from Graeme (author)

If you remember, Neil wanted a boyfriend for his birthday. It's a little late, but he got the present he wanted

 

In other words, Neil got the present he wanted for your birthday.

I'm cool with that.

[Ken84050]

Always!

 

      In that case, very belated greetings to you, Graeme.      GA is hard to navigate, and I didn't find out about your birthday in time.

 

      I heartily agree with the praise in the Chapter 41 reviews.   Something not yet mentioned is Patrick O'Malley as the Carlton club's éminence grise.   In Chapter 12:

Christopher smiled.... His boss was one of the club’s hidden assets. Despite not appearing as such on the club records, he was their principal, early-talent identifier ....

 

So in Chapter 41:

Tony scowled .... “I can’t find anyone by the name of O’Malley on the Carlton website...."

 

But we know how lucky Ty is to have Patrick on his side.

 

      Todd was perceptive in telling Neil:

I’m just saying that you’re back standing on your own two feet now, and you don’t need me hanging around as much.”

 

Despite Neil's diffidence, he forms very clear ideas and intentions  -  a mouse with the heart of a lion.   He even advises Liam about Doug.

“Doug and I have...an understanding....  he wants you to be happy. So do I....  Don’t forget to spend some time with him, too...."

 

Liam has acquired a pretty impressive boyfriend,  and he knows it.

Edited May 16, 2015 by Ken84050

[impunity]

Always!

I hope you had a wonderful day.

[Graeme]

Thanks, everyone. Yes, I had a great day :smile:

 

And as a bonus extra, a couple of days later was the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (IDAHOT). As they've done for the last few years, the AFL Players Association joined in as part of the campaign against homophobia. If you checked out the video, you'll see a couple of names that have appeared in my story: Brock McLean (from chapter 40) and Nathan Buckley (former AFL player and now the head coach for the Collingwood Football Club -- mentioned a couple of times, though he doesn't make a personal appearance).